What I learned from Barry...and God

This is a true story.  The names have not been changed because there is no one innocent to protect (see Romans 3:23).  It had been quite an eventful year.  I had graduated from the largest accredited Protestant seminary in the world in May.  I was voted on (and approved) to serve as an Associate Pastor in Wichita, KS; my first full time (paid) ministry position.  I got married in August.  So here I am with my Masters Degree, a new job, a new wife… and no idea what in the Wide World of Sports to do.  I am in way over my head.  However, God was in control and sent me to a church that had their troubles, as it seems all do, but they were kind and patient with me.  The Senior Pastor liked me and was a wonderful mentor helping me learn the ropes. 

It was Single Adult Sunday.  We were trying to grow our ministry to single adults.  I had been looking forward to the day.  The single adults would lead in the morning worship service.  We would follow the service with a fellowship lunch (a typical Baptist tradition).  I taught the Single Adult Sunday School class.  We were having our morning coffee fellowship just before I would begin the lesson and there he was.

The doorway seemed to be filled with his presence as the entire class was drawn to his entrance.  He was tall with a white three piece suit.  He wore no necktie but he had a plethora of gold necklaces draped around his neck.  If this were not before his time, he would have reminded everyone of Mr. T except for two things.  Mr. T was bald.  This guy had a huge afro and black beard.  Secondly, Mr. T was black.  This guy was white.  I noticed one of the women in the class was visibly distressed with his appearance so I asked if she was OK.  She came to the church from a life of drug addiction and had a terrified look as she told me, “I recognize the jewelry, he is and angel of the Devil!”  I found out later that she snuck out and smoked a joint in the parking lot to calm her nerves.  That may have been the first medical marijuana usage in the US.  No matter, I was on staff and it was my class so, I walked up and introduced myself and invited him in to join us.  He smiled and told me his name was Barry.  He enjoyed the free coffee and pastries and seemed to enjoy the class. 

Since the singles were leading worship I had the opportunity to sit with my new bride.  We were on the back row, her preferred spot, as the service was about to begin.  She turned and noticed him standing at the rear entrance and was clearly startled and asked, “Who is that?”  At least she didn’t sneak out for a joint.  I had about the same level of maturity then as now so I answered, “He is an angel of the Devil but it’s OK, he was in my Sunday School class.”  Surprisingly enough she still loves me although after 38 years I still have not matured much beyond continuing with such remarks.

Barry stayed for the fellowship dinner and had a lively conversation with the senior pastor and me.  He told us that he couldn’t understand why people seemed to shy away from him.  Clyde, the senior pastor, was bold enough to tell him that his dress (the white suit and jewelry) and his huge afro were quite different from the way most people around there looked.  Barry smiled and said, “If my hair is a problem then I can change that.”  He took off the huge afro wig to expose a shiny bald head.  Needless to say Barry was quite a different character than most of the folks we ran across in Wichita, Kansas. 

However, I learned a great deal as God seemed to lead Barry to us.  We found out that Barry had family in Arizona.  He had received an injury that caused brain damage and received a monthly disability check.  Other than the brain injury that affected his personality, he had consumed quite a large number of drugs in his day and that seemed to also affect his personality and thinking process.  However his family assured that he was not a danger to anyone and he enjoyed a life of wandering over the country.  They were grateful for our update on his whereabouts.  We discovered that he was very childlike and as we reached out to him I believe that for the first time in his life he heard and understood (as much as was possible for him) the Gospel.  Barry professed his faith in Jesus and we baptized him as he became an active member of our church. 

Barry was admittedly not good with his monthly check so Clyde agreed to help him by keeping his money and give him a daily allowance.   Clyde kept strict records of these transactions and asked me to be a third party witness so there would be no question of impropriety.   He was truly an interesting addition to our church family.  Among other things, he was the first male member of our choir with ear rings to my knowledge.  Barry seemed quite at home until one day he came into the church office and told us that it was time for him to move on. 

He thanked us graciously for leading him to know Jesus and helping him with his money and other areas of his life.  Barry told Clyde that he wanted to give him some money to express his appreciation.  Clyde refused saying that the fact that we had helped him was reward enough.  However, Barry insisted and Clyde finally said, “If it is important that you do this that is fine.  Do what you think you need to do and I’ll donate it back to the church.”  Barry smiled and gave Clyde $50.  We shook hands and bid him a fond farewell as he drove out of the parking lot.  We had not been back in Clyde’s office very long when Barry returned and said, “You know, I got to thinking and I may need that $50.”  We all smiled as Clyde returned the money and we watched Barry drive off into the next adventure that God had for him…and to whomever God would lead him. 

I share this story because it taught me several things that I hope will be helpful to you.  First, God has all sorts of children in this world.  If we will be open to those who may be a little different we can truly be used of God to help one another along in this journey of life.  Second, “Never be afraid of anything from God.”  That was a phrase that Clyde taught me.  We may encounter things in life that we have not learned about in a book or class, I never learned about anyone like Barry in seminary, but if we will be open to what God brings us and respond in love and trust we may allow God to open some doors to wonderful experiences of faith and love in our lives and the lives of others that we could not imagine.  Finally, I am reminded that there is always hope when we place our faith in God.  If ‘an angel of the Devil’ could find a life changing relationship with the love of Jesus there may be hope for anyone. 

Press On!

Words Matter

Words have meaning.  I know that sounds simple but it seems to be a truth that we may have lost.  In my lifetime I have seen words redefined to create cultural change.  When I was younger homosexual behavior was usually described as ‘queer’.  That was not a compliment in those days.  Interestingly that word is now embraced and often used by those once slandered with that term.  Anyway, without getting into an argument or discussion about moral behavior, I am only using this example to show how the redefinition of words can have a powerful impact on culture.  I have often said, "If one desires to change the culture the best place to start is to change the language,"  So stay with me as I seek to show how changing the language made a difference in a behavior that was once not as openly tolerable in society but became more acceptable simply by changing the meaning of words.  'Queer' evolved into an ‘alternate lifestyle’ which was a more pleasing.  Then it became ‘Gay’ which once was only an adjective that referred to behavior that was ‘lighthearted and carefree or happily excited’.  Once it became the norm as a description of a lifestyle it made things more acceptable to society.  However, today's use of the word would put an entirely new meaning on the old Fred Astaire movie, 'The Gay Divorcee'.  Anyway, I hope you get my point about the impact of changing the meaning of words.   

A family once was defined by Webster as ‘the basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their children’ then it was redefined as ‘any of various social units differing from but regarded as equivalent to the traditional family’.  Again I am not seeking to make a comment on moral beliefs, rather on how one needs to be aware of the words we use and how the slightest change or redefinition can have major consequences. 

As a Christian minister I made my living studying and using words.  I had to study Greek and Hebrew to better understand and convey the true meaning of Bible verses.  As someone who traveled to different countries I tried to learn some of the language of countries I would visit to communicate better.  I learned that the words and the way you pronounce them can often make a huge difference.  We took a medical team to Cambodia with a Christian dentist who gave free dental work to poor people who had never seen a dentist.  The Cambodian missionaries tried to teach the tonal language to those who were going to assist Dr. Mason by teaching them the Cambodian way to say, “Please open your mouth”.  One of our volunteers wondered why they would always laugh when he asked them to open their mouth.  The missionaries asked him to repeat what he was saying, upon which they also laughed.  In a tonal language the slightest variation of a sound can mean an entirely different word.  With his Southern accent he was actually asking each person in line to, “Please open your chicken.” 

Some differences in word use are not as humorous and some small changes can be dangerous.  I remember reading a different religion's version of John 1:1.  Our Christian Bible says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  This version only added one letter but it made a huge and dangerous difference.  Instead of “the Word was God” they added the singular letter ‘a’ between ‘was’ and ‘God’.  This reading; ‘and the Word was a God’ changed the entire theology of Christian belief.  That one letter demoted Jesus from being God in flesh to being 'a' god…like the many other gods that existed in that belief system.  You can see how it is important to realize that words have meaning and changing the meaning can become dangerous. 

Today we often hear of people who are encouraged to speak ‘their truth’.  We are encouraged to honor and believe their ‘personal truth’.  We may have our own memory or version of an event but when I share ‘my truth’ or anyone else shares ‘their truth’ it is not necessarily THE truth.   Truth is not something that is owned or shaped by any individual.  When truth is watered down to fit any individual’s personal experience, philosophy or opinion we are moving to dangerous territory. 

Today there is a gradual cultural shift to make humanism (attaching prime importance to human matters rather than divine) sound good and even like the Godly way to behave and believe.  Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.  While many humanistic philosophies are not necessarily bad, it can be problematic when we think there is a human solution to all the world's  problems.  When we think of ourselves as solely in charge of the planet and our lives, we miss out on the resource that truly is the solution to each problem…Jesus.   Knowing that we are in the hands and control of Jesus can change everything.  I think this is well illustrated by the two poems below. 

Invictus is a well-known tribute that speaks of being in charge of one’s own life.  William Henley wrote it as a young man with strong atheistic beliefs.  When struggling with personal illness he had no other place to find strength than within himself and thus became angry.  He wrote Invictus as a way to shake his fist at the injustice of this world and whatever God others may believe in. 

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate,

I am the captain of my soul.

Some years later a parallel poem was written by a less known poet, Dorothea Day, who was a believer and found strength and resources beyond her human understanding.  Notice the difference a relationship with Jesus, The Word, can make in one’s outlook. 

Out of the light that dazzles me,


Bright as the sun from pole to pole,


I thank the God I know to be,


For Christ - the Conqueror of my soul.

Since His the sway of circumstance,


I would not wince nor cry aloud.


Under the rule which men call chance,


My head, with joy, is humbly bowed.

Beyond this place of sin and tears,


That Life with Him and His the Aid,


That, spite the menace of the years,


Keeps, and will keep me unafraid.

I have no fear though straight the gate:


He cleared from punishment the scroll.


Christ is the Master of my fate!


Christ is the Captain of my soul!

Be careful with the words, philosophies and lifestyles you read, listen to, think or follow.  Words matter!  Words make a difference.  The WORD matters!  The WORD makes a difference!